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Question Everything: The Rise of AVID as America's Largest College Readiness Program
How AVID levels the playing field, helping underserved students come out ahead In Question Everything, award-winning education writer Jay Mathews presents the stories and winning strategies behind the Advancement Via Individual Determination program (AVID). With the goal of preparing students for the future – whether that future includes college or not – AVID teaches students the personal management skills that will help them survive and thrive. Focused on time management, presentation, and cooperation, the AVID program leads not only to impressive educational outcomes, but also to young adults prepared for life after school. This book tells the stories of AVID educators, students, and families to illustrate how and why the program works, and demonstrates how teachers can employ AVID's strategies with their own students.
Over the past thirty years, AVID has grown from a single teacher's practice to an organization serving 400,000 middle- and high-school students in 47 states and 16 countries. Question Everything describes the ideas and strategies behind the upward trajectory of both the program and the students who take part.
Learn which foundational skills are emphasized for future success Discover how AVID teaches personal management skills in the academic context Contrast AVID student outcomes with national averages Consider implementing AVID concepts and techniques into current curricula As college readiness becomes a top priority for the Federal Government, the Gates Foundation, and other influential organizations, AVID's track record stands out as one of success. By leveling the playing field and introducing "real-world" realities early on, the program teaches students skills that help them in the workplace and beyond.
Over the past thirty years, AVID has grown from a single teacher's practice to an organization serving 400,000 middle- and high-school students in 47 states and 16 countries. Question Everything describes the ideas and strategies behind the upward trajectory of both the program and the students who take part.
Learn which foundational skills are emphasized for future success Discover how AVID teaches personal management skills in the academic context Contrast AVID student outcomes with national averages Consider implementing AVID concepts and techniques into current curricula As college readiness becomes a top priority for the Federal Government, the Gates Foundation, and other influential organizations, AVID's track record stands out as one of success. By leveling the playing field and introducing "real-world" realities early on, the program teaches students skills that help them in the workplace and beyond.
- GenresEducation
237 pages, Kindle Edition
First published April 27, 2015
38 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
May 5, 2016
Question Everything, the new book by Jay Mathews, at 254 pages, minus Appendix, traces the development and rise of the AVID program (Advancement Via Individual Determination) a program developed by teacher Mary Catherine Swanson in 1980 in her San Diego 9th grade classroom. The topic of AVID really works for Jay Mathews. He has written others on the development of the AP program of the College Board, the rise of the IB program from Switzerland, and the tenacity and heart of famed math teacher Jaime Escalante. The idea for this book appears to be a natural outreach of Jay writing about successful programs that work, what propelled them forward, and what maintains their popularity. Granted, every program he has written about appears to have few detractors, it is an inevitability that this program has few detractors as well. He does highlight and point out that several schools systems, as well as schools, and teachers, have had mixed results, if not failing results along with cancellation of the program; the book maintains that the program is universally acknowledged and accepted, and is used by over 450,000 students world-wide.
The book stands out as thoroughly researched and well laid out. The book chapters have a see-saw approach and feel to them: one chapter about a teacher or school system using the program, the proceeding chapter about a student who has had amazing success with the program. This balancing act, along similar lines aka Dan Brown novels of hero and villain, may detract from its emotionalism as one is almost led to believe that when you get to the individual biographies that all students will end up at Ivy League schools or top tier schools, and all teachers using it will be instantly promoted to higher levels of authority and responsibility. This may be somewhat bombastic, but it does ring true for a majority of the chapters, lessening the emotional impact of whatever impact the chapters were supposed to have.
The way he zeroes in on the components of the AVID program keeps the book afloat, but the tightness that the national organization has over its proprietary components begs the reader to keep reading and hoping for any divulging of nuggets of information to grasp onto and have a better understanding for the entire program. An incident in which teachers at a conference were not allowed to have the slides, but could take notes from them, reveal a strict adherence to divulging any concrete secrets of the program. This does seem somewhat ironic that this information has to be held in the strictest of secrecy when other books such as Dave Ellis’ Becoming a Master Student are so ubiquitous.
The book does answer most questions I had about the AVID program, except for lingering suspicions of why it will not work for below-average students and help them achieve, and why it cannot take gifted students to soar to new heights. If it is good, shouldn’t it be good for everyone, or does it really have its limitations within a very limited and narrow demographic of students? The book includes many examples of successful students, teachers, and school districts that utilize the program, but how could it be otherwise? Many student biographies tug at the heart almost unnecessarily as incredibly challenged students are shown as glaring examples of eventual success. This may be leading a horse to water, and this approach does wear thin, even at the mid-way portion of the book. The details are accurate, somewhat extreme at times, but sensible. Could other programs have produced similar results? That question is never answered and it keeps lingering in my thoughts the farther I read into the book.
The detailed examples are expressed uniquely well, belaying the fact that jay has spent a lifetime in the newspaper business as a n education reporter and does lay out the facts succinctly in a Who? What? Where? When? How? Why? fashion; but that may be what I get from the book; other readers may feel quite differently.
His lead draws one right in, and makes one want to continue reading. He starts the book from programs conception to infancy, through adolescence and adult development from 1980 to the present with a few questions of whether it will maintain its success and implications for the program’s introduction on other continents.
Linking details, using sequence, and transition words and paragraphs are old hat for a veteran newspaper reporter and reveals an insightful school to tell a great story in a traditional non-fiction “kind of way.” His use of chronological sequence as an organizational structure was the ideal choice for this book. He speeds up to get to the current situation of the program in as many chapters is as necessary, and slowed down when he wanted to draw out his points or examples and demonstrate more, which is a fabulous use of pacing. The ending of his book encouraged me to think about student study skills in a completely new way, and wrapped up all the details nicely for me to say “Not bad.” (I was always a tough crowd.)
It is clear that hay enjoyed writing about AVID and shows through much of the book. This translucent quality, an effervescent approach is revealed through his professional yet colloquial tone making the book believable and authentic. Because he understands, what readers need to know about AVID, though key components are safeguarded as stridently as the formula for Coke in Georgia, the narration is strong in the book. The thesis is clear: AVID is successful and what makes it so; it was effortlessly easy to grasp the main ideas.
Verbs and adjectives energize the writing. There is a down-home quaintness to the book. His action verbs keep the book lively energized from beginning to end. I appreciate how carefully he has chosen his words, especially in dealing with student biographies. He selected words that relate directly to AVID that can also describe the personal characteristics and achievements of the individuals as well.
The student biographies stretched the book purposefully but maybe a bit overdone. I think I stated this directly before, but coming back to this part of the book overplays and underpays the preceding chapters. I am not sure if he could have done it any other way, while keeping the momentum and focus moving forward.
The paragraphs and sentences are built with precision and skill, so the ideas are clear and energetic. Reading certain sections aloud, in which the inquiry-based discussion methods are lightly described, helped to understand how a teacher can successfully adopt the same methods in his or her classroom. The complex and compound sentences create a wonderful rhythm and the stories flow extremely well in this regard. It has always been a pleasure reading a book by Jay, regardless of whether or not I think he “hits it out of the park.” His risk-taking definitely worked well for AVID.
It is always a pleasure to read the work of a seasoned journalist. He gets to the heart of the matter and keeps the focus there.
(Via my Review from Amazon.com)
The book stands out as thoroughly researched and well laid out. The book chapters have a see-saw approach and feel to them: one chapter about a teacher or school system using the program, the proceeding chapter about a student who has had amazing success with the program. This balancing act, along similar lines aka Dan Brown novels of hero and villain, may detract from its emotionalism as one is almost led to believe that when you get to the individual biographies that all students will end up at Ivy League schools or top tier schools, and all teachers using it will be instantly promoted to higher levels of authority and responsibility. This may be somewhat bombastic, but it does ring true for a majority of the chapters, lessening the emotional impact of whatever impact the chapters were supposed to have.
The way he zeroes in on the components of the AVID program keeps the book afloat, but the tightness that the national organization has over its proprietary components begs the reader to keep reading and hoping for any divulging of nuggets of information to grasp onto and have a better understanding for the entire program. An incident in which teachers at a conference were not allowed to have the slides, but could take notes from them, reveal a strict adherence to divulging any concrete secrets of the program. This does seem somewhat ironic that this information has to be held in the strictest of secrecy when other books such as Dave Ellis’ Becoming a Master Student are so ubiquitous.
The book does answer most questions I had about the AVID program, except for lingering suspicions of why it will not work for below-average students and help them achieve, and why it cannot take gifted students to soar to new heights. If it is good, shouldn’t it be good for everyone, or does it really have its limitations within a very limited and narrow demographic of students? The book includes many examples of successful students, teachers, and school districts that utilize the program, but how could it be otherwise? Many student biographies tug at the heart almost unnecessarily as incredibly challenged students are shown as glaring examples of eventual success. This may be leading a horse to water, and this approach does wear thin, even at the mid-way portion of the book. The details are accurate, somewhat extreme at times, but sensible. Could other programs have produced similar results? That question is never answered and it keeps lingering in my thoughts the farther I read into the book.
The detailed examples are expressed uniquely well, belaying the fact that jay has spent a lifetime in the newspaper business as a n education reporter and does lay out the facts succinctly in a Who? What? Where? When? How? Why? fashion; but that may be what I get from the book; other readers may feel quite differently.
His lead draws one right in, and makes one want to continue reading. He starts the book from programs conception to infancy, through adolescence and adult development from 1980 to the present with a few questions of whether it will maintain its success and implications for the program’s introduction on other continents.
Linking details, using sequence, and transition words and paragraphs are old hat for a veteran newspaper reporter and reveals an insightful school to tell a great story in a traditional non-fiction “kind of way.” His use of chronological sequence as an organizational structure was the ideal choice for this book. He speeds up to get to the current situation of the program in as many chapters is as necessary, and slowed down when he wanted to draw out his points or examples and demonstrate more, which is a fabulous use of pacing. The ending of his book encouraged me to think about student study skills in a completely new way, and wrapped up all the details nicely for me to say “Not bad.” (I was always a tough crowd.)
It is clear that hay enjoyed writing about AVID and shows through much of the book. This translucent quality, an effervescent approach is revealed through his professional yet colloquial tone making the book believable and authentic. Because he understands, what readers need to know about AVID, though key components are safeguarded as stridently as the formula for Coke in Georgia, the narration is strong in the book. The thesis is clear: AVID is successful and what makes it so; it was effortlessly easy to grasp the main ideas.
Verbs and adjectives energize the writing. There is a down-home quaintness to the book. His action verbs keep the book lively energized from beginning to end. I appreciate how carefully he has chosen his words, especially in dealing with student biographies. He selected words that relate directly to AVID that can also describe the personal characteristics and achievements of the individuals as well.
The student biographies stretched the book purposefully but maybe a bit overdone. I think I stated this directly before, but coming back to this part of the book overplays and underpays the preceding chapters. I am not sure if he could have done it any other way, while keeping the momentum and focus moving forward.
The paragraphs and sentences are built with precision and skill, so the ideas are clear and energetic. Reading certain sections aloud, in which the inquiry-based discussion methods are lightly described, helped to understand how a teacher can successfully adopt the same methods in his or her classroom. The complex and compound sentences create a wonderful rhythm and the stories flow extremely well in this regard. It has always been a pleasure reading a book by Jay, regardless of whether or not I think he “hits it out of the park.” His risk-taking definitely worked well for AVID.
It is always a pleasure to read the work of a seasoned journalist. He gets to the heart of the matter and keeps the focus there.
(Via my Review from Amazon.com)
November 14, 2017
I'm convinced that education is now where medicine was a hundred years ago: on the verge of providing evidence-based treatment as the standard of care. AVID seems to be one of the most promising treatments.
Components of AVID:
1. teach and enforce orderly learning: well-organized binders, making time for homework, cooperating with other students
2. use of Cornell notes to embed learning through repetition and self-testing (see How We Learn)
3. all kids should be in the most challenging courses
4. "students must see each concept as a response to an important question -- they should practice inquiry-based learning"
5. tutoring: should focus on helping students develop the questions to figure out how to arrive at answers. Students at tutoring sessions write the problem, what they did to try to solve it, and what their point of confusion is.
6. students need support in demanding college-level courses to ensure students are "managing their time, taking notes, benefiting from tutors, and asking good questions:
7. applying for college must be part of school
8. teachers and students bond and are part of a free-thinking community (2)
Loved the story of a teacher who, told there was no room in honors courses for her AVID students, removed the *honors* students from the lists. The parents of the honors students called to complain, and more sections were added (17) Love, love, love.
writing, inquiry, and collaboration (24).
The developer understood that AVID needed to continuously improve (50)
The importance of rigorous courses: "school districts requiring all ninth graders to take Algebra I produced more students passing that subject than the number of ninth graders who *took* Algebra I before it was required. Why not have most students take Algebra I in middle school? (53)
AVID as low as 4th grade: binders, binder checks, and agendas
kids with learning disabilities passed AP exams: 139
Components of AVID:
1. teach and enforce orderly learning: well-organized binders, making time for homework, cooperating with other students
2. use of Cornell notes to embed learning through repetition and self-testing (see How We Learn)
3. all kids should be in the most challenging courses
4. "students must see each concept as a response to an important question -- they should practice inquiry-based learning"
5. tutoring: should focus on helping students develop the questions to figure out how to arrive at answers. Students at tutoring sessions write the problem, what they did to try to solve it, and what their point of confusion is.
6. students need support in demanding college-level courses to ensure students are "managing their time, taking notes, benefiting from tutors, and asking good questions:
7. applying for college must be part of school
8. teachers and students bond and are part of a free-thinking community (2)
Loved the story of a teacher who, told there was no room in honors courses for her AVID students, removed the *honors* students from the lists. The parents of the honors students called to complain, and more sections were added (17) Love, love, love.
writing, inquiry, and collaboration (24).
The developer understood that AVID needed to continuously improve (50)
The importance of rigorous courses: "school districts requiring all ninth graders to take Algebra I produced more students passing that subject than the number of ninth graders who *took* Algebra I before it was required. Why not have most students take Algebra I in middle school? (53)
AVID as low as 4th grade: binders, binder checks, and agendas
kids with learning disabilities passed AP exams: 139
July 19, 2015
I've heard about the program off and on over the twenty years of my career, but I've only been an AVID teacher for just a year.
What I find remarkable about AVID in general is how inspiring and invigorating the program is. After a training, after a successful Socratic Seminar with my class, and now after reading this book, I find myself chomping at the bit, ready to get into my classroom and put these systems to work.
This book won't teach you how to run an AVID classroom or how to WICORize your lessons, but, if you're like me, it will make you want to start that work yourself.
What I find remarkable about AVID in general is how inspiring and invigorating the program is. After a training, after a successful Socratic Seminar with my class, and now after reading this book, I find myself chomping at the bit, ready to get into my classroom and put these systems to work.
This book won't teach you how to run an AVID classroom or how to WICORize your lessons, but, if you're like me, it will make you want to start that work yourself.
July 27, 2016
Loved this book! Finally, a simple idea for students and staff...Question Everything
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews